UC Santa Cruz vs UW-Madison

Nestled in the vibrant city of Santa Cruz, California, and the bustling college town of Madison, Wisconsin, University of California-Santa Cruz (UCSC) and University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) stand as two distinct academic powerhouses. While both institutions share a commitment to academic excellence and offer a diverse range of programs, they also possess unique characteristics that set them apart. UCSC boasts a lower acceptance rate, a higher proportion of undergraduate students, and a more diverse student body, while UW-Madison offers a wider array of graduate programs, a higher graduation rate, and a larger endowment. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to delve into these differences and more, helping you make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	University of California-Santa Cruz	University of Wisconsin-Madison
Overview
Location	Santa Cruz, California	Madison, Wisconsin
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	89.0%	95.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	58.6%	60.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $120	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75
SAT range	N/A	1320 - 1500
ACT range	N/A	26 - 32
Students submitting SAT score		15.0%
Students submitting ACT score		55.0%
Total number of applicants	61,695	53,781
Total number of admissions given out	36,177	32,459
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,187	8,465
Yield rate	11.6%	26.1%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $36,107 Out of state: $65,861	In state: $27,418 Out of state: $55,306
Average net price	$19,615	$13,484
Tuition	In state: $11,442 Out of state: $41,196	In state: $9,273 Out of state: $37,161
Room & board	$17,429	Room/dormitory: $7,367 Meal plan: $4,100
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	57.0% Average amount $19,199	54.0% Average amount $10,932
Students receiving federal student loan	20.0% Average amount $4,717	26.0% Average amount $5,175
Students taking out private loans	9.0% Average amount $3,115	6.0% Average amount $16,550

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	17,864 Men 52.2% Women 47.8%	34,561 Men 47.5% Women 52.5%
Graduate students	1,977 Men 53.4% Women 46.6%	12,455 Men 46.6% Women 53.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	5.7%	50.6%
International students	8.0%	13.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	9,300	9,226
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Colorado Oregon Texas	Wisconsin Illinois Minnesota California New York

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Physical Science Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Computer and Information Science	Health Professions Business Social Sciences Engineering Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	24:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	78.1%	89.2%
Dropout rate	15.6%	10.0%
Transferred out	5.1%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,207 Year 2: $79,150 Year 3: $93,848 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,040 Year 2: $63,530 Year 3: $85,557 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,378 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $82,012 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,725 Year 2: $60,185 Year 3: $70,114 Biomedical/Medical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,515 Year 2: $48,823 Year 3: $68,276 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,252 Year 2: $31,941 Year 3: $65,929 Economics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: $62,051 Business/Managerial Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,826 Year 2: $51,607 Year 3: $61,441 Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,511 Year 2: $54,894 Year 3: $57,162 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,243 Year 2: $36,938 Year 3: $54,748	Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $107,256 Year 3: $131,458 Marketing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $113,083 Year 2: $111,992 Year 3: $130,357 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,390 Year 2: $113,091 Year 3: $124,360 Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $96,320 Year 2: $117,042 Year 3: $123,777 Engineering, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $110,338 Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $111,424 Real Estate (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $115,339 Year 3: $104,219 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $115,387 Year 2: $100,213 Year 3: $103,937 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $78,839 Year 2: $81,997 Year 3: $97,306 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $85,538 Year 3: $94,093 Real Estate (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,730 Year 2: $73,949 Year 3: $91,306

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